Rylan Clark reveals his mental health struggles ‘hit him like a baseball bat’

Rylan Clark has detailed how his mental health struggles ‘hit him like a baseball bat’ after he was forced to take a break from his work commitments last year.

The presenter, 33, was hospitalised last year in the wake of his split from husband Dan Neal, admitting at the time he felt he’d become ‘a danger to himself’ after his weight plummeted to just nine stone.

Now, speaking on his Ry-Union podcast, the star admitted it was ‘really really hard’ to deal with his mental health battles after he and Dan split in June.

He said: ‘I’ve never in my life thought that I would go through a crisis like that.

‘But I did, ultimately, and it literally hit me round the face like a baseball bat, because I always thought I was too strong for it.

‘Like, I’m never going to let anything like that happen to me, but then it does and it’s really, really hard to deal with.’

Scary: The presenter was hospitalised last year in the wake of his split from husband Dan Neal, admitting at the time he felt he’d become ‘a danger to himself’

Rylan had been married to husband Dan for six years before they split in June, with the star taking a four-month break from his TV and radio work to cope with the fallout.

In January he shared that he was hospitalised in the wake of his split from Dan, telling The Observer it was ‘for safety reasons’ after he refused to eat.

He said: ‘It’s really strange talking about this, because I’ve not even spoken about it to my friends. I just never thought I could get that ill.

‘I went down to just over 9st and I’m 6ft 4in. It got bad. Like, very bad. And I didn’t think it would get better. I needed help.’

Ordeal: Now, speaking on his Ry-Union podcast, the star admitted it was ‘really really hard’ to deal with his mental health battles after he and Dan split in June

The former X Factor contestant confessed he ‘did not know himself at certain points’ and was ‘having thoughts and doing things that made him f****d up’. 

He continued: ‘I didn’t think I’d be here. I didn’t think I could continue [to work or to live]. I didn’t think I’d actually come back. I was very… gone.’

Rylan admitted in a recent interview with The Sun that he became ‘dangerously thin’ and ‘mentally unwell’ following his split from husband Dan Neal last year.

And, while Rylan admits life was ‘s**t’ after the break-up, he has since bounced back, concentrating on his health and diet while buffing up in the gym, putting on four stone. 

Upsetting: Rylan had been married to husband Dan for six years before they split in June, with the star taking a four-month break from his TV and radio work to cope with the fallout

He said: ‘I got ill and I lost weight, I went down to under ten stone — and I’m six feet four inches, so that’s not good. The honest truth is that it’s been s**t.’

Rylan and his ex Dan met when Dan was a housemate on series 14 of Big Brother in 2013, with Rylan hosting spin-off show Big Brother’s Bit On The Side.

The former couple wed in November 2015 after Dan asked Rylan to marry him in Paris.

If you have been affected by anything in this article and need support call the Samaritans on 116 123 or email jo@samaritans.org.

Upsetting: In January he shared that he was hospitalised in the wake of his split from Dan, telling The Observer it was ‘for safety reasons’ after he refused to eat